Dietary and microtopographical selectivity of Greenland white‐fronted geese feeding on Icelandic hayfields
The feeding ecology of Greenland white‐fronted geese Anser albifrons flavirostris was studied during .spring staging in Iceland 1997. Geese feeding on Poa pratense dominated hayfields (> 80% cover) were highly selective, selecting for Deschampsia caespitosa which comprised only 10% of the swa...
| Published in: | Ecography |
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
1998
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0587.1998.tb00439.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fj.1600-0587.1998.tb00439.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1600-0587.1998.tb00439.x |
| Summary: | The feeding ecology of Greenland white‐fronted geese Anser albifrons flavirostris was studied during .spring staging in Iceland 1997. Geese feeding on Poa pratense dominated hayfields (> 80% cover) were highly selective, selecting for Deschampsia caespitosa which comprised only 10% of the sward. Geese fed most on the south‐facing fringes of Deschampsia tussocks. Subsequent analysis showed that the southern fringes of Deschampsia tussocks supported significantly greater biomass (27% greater mass of green material) and that leaves growing on the southern faces had significantly higher protein content than those on the northern faces (33.9% vs 30.5%) ‐ It appears that the geese maximise their nutritional intake in spring by selecting the grass species of highest quality and taking the most nutritious parts of the plants. |
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